2 Heybrook TT2s

[Whitneyville]

My TT2 has the cast base, a long tone arm plinth (about 1 CM thick birch I think), the main bearing is bronze with a 3-4mm steel ball at the bottom, and has a Grace 707MkII on it when I bought it used about 20 years back. I had to "fiddle" with the suspension springs because someone, sometime got it out of level and too stiff. Some sort of electronic speed control board and motor that work well, so no plans to mess with either for now. Last month it got a new drive belt, The motor has a fair amount of torque, but not as much as some TT's, more than others. Speed accuracy good and low wow and no apparent flutter by the strobe disk. Sitting on hard rubber feet with black high-density foam under them to isolate the table from me stomping around-works well. As I remember, 20 years back, I paid $200 for it with no cartridge(fine with me). I thought a got a good deal...after the "tune-up" I think I darn near stole it! Oh yeah, nice medium oak finish and good plastic dust cover(and hinges), no cracks or excessive wear/scratches. Still "tweeking" my old AT-14Sa cartridge on it. Gain some in one place and lose some in another. I think I can get a bit more out of the cart on "average" albums. (Don't we all!)

[Alec124c41]

That should be sounding very good, and should keep you happily spinning records for a long time. And they look so good, too.
These are definitely a good step up from what I've spent most of my life with. Any improvements over the TT2 would be incremental and expensive, as far as I can see.

Cheers,
Alec

[hags]

I crack open, and sometimes modify, practically everything. I like to see how things are built, and will dump something that looks great on the outside, but trashy inside.
The Heybrooks are solidly built. None of this cheap stamped sheet-metal sub-platter nonsense here. To see the insides inspires confidence in the quality of the construction, and that these are worth getting set up properly.
As far as the sound is concerned, they are excellent. I also have a Technics SP-10/SME 3009 II imp., and an Oracle Alexandria/Jelco 250. I'm perfectly happy listening to any of them. (Must get the Ariston going, too!)
It will take a lot of listening to be able to make any relevant comparative distinctions. Then there are the 2 Lencos to work up...
I don't expect this stuff to be finished for quite some time!

Cheers,
Alec

That's good to hear. I've been searching for a Heybrook for a couple of months now. They must be good 'cause I haven't seen but 1 for sale.

[mimoser]

I sure wouldn‘t part with mine, not for all sondeks in the world!

Michael

[bubba45]

Well to resurrect an old post, Alec how is the comparison going?

I`m really interested to hear how it panned out.

[mimoser]

Since resurrection and comparison is the last word in this rather old thread I will do a lazarus on this TT2 thread and resurrect it with a comparison:

Three months ago I stumbled upon a Sondek LP12 at a fleamarket:
It was in a rather sorry state complete with mildew and an opaque TT2 lid

When asked for a price the seller said "Each TT will be EUR 10,–", so I could not resist adopting it among other audio rubble.
Closer inspection yielded the following impressions:







When plugged in at home, it even worked!

As I was going to Hongkong on Business in May and had a spare RB250 and a new Pickering 625e lying around, I decided to meet Edmund Chan and bring a Hercules/Mose with me.
In the meantime I cleaned up the mess, oiled the plinth and let that dry.
Two weeks ago all other parts – Origin Live armboard and VTA adjuster, Black Oil and bearing cap – had arrived and I started reassembly and setting up:


The opaque lid now sits on the TT2, the clear lid from the TT2 went onto the LP12 and I set them up for a side by side comparison:


The TT2 runs on a Heed Orbit with an RB 250 with steel stub and heavyweight and a Stanton 681eee MK2 with a Pickering 625e stylus:


The LP12 runs on the Hercules/Mose wit a serviced and rewired RB250 with steel stub and tungsten weight and a Pickering 625e system:


After trying an el-cheapo Vivanco pre and a LEAK Stereo 30 plus as phonopre, I robbed my son of his Yamaha CR 450 to get a comparable phonostage to my Yamaha RX-460:


…

[mimoser]

…
trading phono pres was necessary, because the LP 12 sounded incredibly bad through the Vivanco (which is a sh***y phono pre obviously) and too "warm" through the leak.
Both Yammies give an anylytical representation of the phono signal and should not be too far apart from each other as far as "family sound" goes.
Using the Yamaha CR-450 as phonopre proved that the LP12 and the TT2 are not far apart performance wise. The main difference is a more lively presentation from the LP12, though bass is a little bit softer and more muddled.
The TT2 is nearer to a CD-player regarding detail and control, midrange is not as pronounced as with the LP12.
As you might have concluded from me running a Yamaha System (into Monitor Audio Seven speakers) my listening habits are more on the analytical and fast side of the force, so the TT2s sound is more appealing to my ears. I am happy that my wife also likes the TT2s performance better.
Liking or not liking is - as we say in Austria – unhappiness at a very high level. Both turntables give an excellent presentation of what is contained on the vinyl itself, so in the end it boils down to listening habits and preferences.

To finish things up, let me add some technical details:
Heybrook TT2: cast aluminium subchassis with 18mm ply armboard screwed through in both fixing holes in the subchassis (not recommended, but I like the rigid fixture and attribute the contained and fast response to this fact), RB251 in factory trim, steel stub, espressimo heavyweight.
Linn LP12: spot-welded sub-chassis with pre-circus bearing, 8mm OriginLive tonearm board, RB250 serviced and rewired by Mario Grözinger (http://www.highend-online.eu/), steel stub and tungsten weight, Cardas connector and Linn arm cable.

some cartridge pictures:



listening comparison was done with two identical Vaya Con Dios Night Owls LPs simultaneously.

That’s it, folks!


Michael

[mimoser]

alea iacta est:
after some input from the LP12 Forum on the Linn site, the two TTs switched seats:


The LP12 got a nice place on a "rigid but light" wallshelf:


The TT2 was relocated to the unsuitable position on the box-on-wheels:


The result is much better:
The bass on the LP12 tightened up, the tt started to "sing" Pop and Rock sound fantastic, Electric Ladyland grooves. The LP12 really is a fun table.
But:
Classical Music and Jazz are definitely much more detailed from the TT2!

From the TT2 there is more space, more dimension, more room a n d still a tighter bass. The margin got smaller, but it’s still there. We auditioned both tables with Bernstein/Gershwin (two identical LPs). I got myself a preloved Hormann Audio SUPA2 as alternative phono pre-amp to make life more simple (first picture at the bottom).
The SUPA is much better than the built in preamp in the Yamaha and if you audition the LP12-SUPA against the TT2-integrated they are nearly at par. As soon as you switch preamps, the TT2 outperforms the LP12 by an audible margin.

The bottom line:
The LP12 grooves and rocks, the TT2 is precise as hell.
The RX-460 phono preamp loses noticeably in comparison to the SUPA.

The verdict:
Since my wife and me love precision in music reproduction, the TT2 stays, the LP12 will have to go to a good home focused on PRAT and musical flow …


Michael

[duficity]

Alec,
I know how you feel. I got 3 empire 208, sparta professional, rekokut b12gh and b33 and a Weathers all in the last month. that should last me for projects through next year at least